I'm not sure the author learned anything. There is nothing here from the first discovery that the hole did not exist all the way until the end that could not have been pre-empted by just thinking through the steps you're about to take. There's nothing stopping you from measuring your hoses, measuring your drill chuck, visually checking the flow through the drainage pipe, and even investigating the taps BEFORE you make your first trip to the hardware store. But the second trip I'm already wondering why the author doesn't try to think one step ahead instead of immediately getting in his car to fix the immediate problem.